Gabapentin effectiveness on the sensation of subjective idiopathic tinnitus: a pilot study

Abstract

This prospective, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial evaluated the effectiveness of gabapentin in decreasing subjective features of idiopathic subjective tinnitus in the patients. Pure-tone audiograms, laboratory test and personal histories were used to exclude any particular etiology of tinnitus. Participants were restricted to those with moderate to severe idiopathic subjective tinnitus for at least 6 months. A total of 30 participants received gabapentin in a graduated ascending dose series extending over 4 weeks (peak dose of 900 mg/day). There was not a significant subjective improvement in tinnitus annoyance for the patients (37%) versus controls (42%). Comparison between the results before and after intervention for patients and controls according to subjective response, tinnitus questionnaire, tinnitus severity index and the loudness perception by the patient showed no significant differences (P > 0.05). There is insufficient evidence to support the effectiveness of gabapentin in the treatment of tinnitus up to now.

‘‘Ringing in the Ears’’: Narrative Review of Tinnitus and Its Impact

“…Since such drugs are characterized by potentially serious side effects (e.g., respiratory depression, hypotension, bradycardia, cardiac arrest; Lockwood et al, 2002), they are not in general use. Other medications have been used with less benefit, including zinc (Paaske, Pedersen, Kjems, & Sam, 1991), cinnarizine (Podoshin, Ben-David, Fradis, Gerstel, & Felner, 1991), benzodiazepines (Johnson, Brummett, & Schleuning, 1993), baclofen (Westerberg, Robeson, & Stach, 1996), antiepileptics (Simpson, Gilbert, Weiner, & Davies, 1999), niacin (Benson et al, 2006), and neurontin (Bakhshaee et al, 2008). A further and more comprehensive review of drug therapies and tinnitus can be found in Darlington and Smith (2007).…”

Molecular aspects of tinnitus

“…There is an ongoing controversial discussion regarding the therapeutic success of using gabapentin for tinnitus patients, with reports suggesting positive therapeutic potential for a distinct population of patients Brozoski, 2006, 2007) and reports claiming insufficient evidence for gabapentin effectiveness (Witsell et al, 2007;Bakhshaee et al, 2008). Gabapentin has a predicted high potential for treatment of epilepsy, post-herpetic neuralgic pain as well as sleep disorders (Gee et al, 1996;Gong et al, 2001).…”

The effects of the Chinese herbal medicine EMF01 on salicylate-induced tinnitus in rats

“…The hypothesis that tinnitus may be a form of 'sensory epilepsy' is the reason that many anti-epileptic drugs, such as carbamazepine, gabapentin and vigabatrin, are often prescribed for the disorder . Nonetheless, the clinical evidence for their efficacy in the treatment of tinnitus is limited (Melding and Goodey, 1979;Hulshof and Vermeij, 1985;Zapp, 2001;Bauer and Brozoski, 2006;Witsell et al, 2007;Bakhshaee et al, 2008) and there remains little consensus about the best drug treatment options for tinnitus.…”